UK Socialist Party on credit downgrade

Hannah Sell, Socialist Party deputy general secretary says: “The government has justified brutal austerity by saying that it would reduce the deficit and protect Britain’s AAA credit rating. As we warned the opposite has happened. The deadline for cutting the deficit has now been moved back to 2018. And today’s news that Moody’s has cut the crediting compounds that failure.

“There is no justification for the misery the government is inflicting on working class people. This crisis is a crisis of capitalism; caused by big business and in particular the bankers. Ordinary people should not be paying for it with our jobs and services. We are part of building a mass movement of against the cuts. We support the campaign by trade unionists for the calling a 24 hour general strike as the next step in the fight against austerity. We also believe the anti-cuts movement needs a political voice. We are part of the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) which brings together socialists and trade unionists, including the RMT, to stand candidates against cuts and privatisation.”

The Socialist Party of England and Wales (formerly known as Militant Tendency) is a campaigning, democratic organisation which plays a key role in the anti-cuts movement today. Historically, we played a leading role on Liverpool Labour council in the 1980s when it defied Thatcher and refused to implement cuts winning £60 million to spend on jobs and services in the city. We also led the struggle in the late 80s and early 90s when 18 million people nationwide refused to pay the hated poll tax. We fight against all attacks on the rights and living standards of working class people.